ASML, the Dutch supplier of lithography machines used to make advanced computer chips, is weighing whether to expand production capacity for 2028 beyond the 30 per cent increase it had already flagged to the market, as demand continues to run ahead of its plans. Shares in the company climbed 3.7 per cent on Wednesday 11 November 2026.

The disclosure came about a month after ASML warned that planned output of its Low-NA EUV and DUV immersion systems would fall short of customer demand. The company said at the time that a further increase beyond existing plans was under review, and the supply gap it described stretches across 2027 and 2028.

The brighter session for semiconductor shares followed solid third-quarter results from cloud-computing company CoreWeave, published after the close a day earlier, which beat expectations and came with a raised full-year outlook. The Wall Street Journal reported that the results reignited appetite for artificial intelligence, with ASML up 3.2 per cent in morning trading, ASM International up 6 per cent, Soitec up 9.4 per cent, Infineon Technologies up 6.7 per cent and STMicroelectronics up 4.1 per cent.

Record quarter sets the bar

ASML's operating case rests on strong recent numbers. The company reported third-quarter 2026 net sales of €11.7 billion and net profit of €5.0 billion, with a gross margin of 57.5 per cent. For the closing quarter of 2026, management guided to revenue of €14.2 billion to €15.2 billion, while the raised full-year outlook, lifted about a month ago, points to €44 billion to €45 billion for 2026.

ASML also reported buying roughly 424,000 of its own shares under its running repurchase programme, at a total cost of about €563 million.

Demand signals from memory makers

Reports suggest Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are competing for EUV lithography orders, with each prepared to commit between 10 trillion and 20 trillion South Korean won. Those reports confirm neither a fresh order nor a new announcement from ASML, but they underline the demand signal behind the capacity review. ASML's lithography tools sit at the front of investment in leading-edge logic and memory, so the quality of that demand matters more to the company than daily moves in sentiment.

Research firm TrendForce adds a useful time dimension: it sees delay risk concentrated in data-centre projects from 2028 onward, while the bulk of capacity earmarked for 2027 is already under construction. So long as those builds finish on schedule, the near-term investment base looks sturdier than the political headlines imply.

Labour talks and the later risk

On the internal front, unions said they had jointly withdrawn from negotiations over the introduction date for a technology changeover. ASML has pushed that date to 7 December 2026, with 8 March 2027 set for IT, according to the unions. Their withdrawal applied to the talks on the introduction date.

The constraint that matters sits further out. Possible stricter rules or moratoriums in Texas, Georgia and Ohio, whose newly elected governors had announced such restrictions, could weigh on later investments, while projects already under construction are seen as little threatened in the near term. For now, the operational arguments carry the day, provided ASML meets its guidance and infrastructure projects already in motion keep running.